Books

London: Chapman & Hall, 1859. 1st Edition . Hardcover. Near Fine/No Jacket, As Issued. pp: [vii] viii-x [1]2-254. FIRST EDITION, FIRST ISSUE. Bound in full red calf with gilt trim, raised bands trimmed in gilt, title stamped in gilt. All edges trimmed in gilt. Held in matching red slipcase. The love theme triangle in the novel was likely inspired by a similar situation in 'The Frozen Deep', a play in which Dickens acted. Frontispiece and fourteen plates. Page 213 mis numbered as '113'. Gimbel A143. The 45-chapter novel was published in 31 weekly installments in Dickens' new literary periodical titled All the Year Round. From April 1859 to November 1859, Dickens also republished the chapters as eight monthly sections in green covers.The first weekly installment of A Tale of Two Cities ran in the first issue of All the Year Round on 30 April 1859. The last ran thirty weeks later, on 26 November. This was the last of Dickens' novels to be illustrated by Browne.

A Tale of Two Cities is a historical novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. The novel tells the story of the French Doctor Manette, his 18-year-long imprisonment in the Bastille in Paris and his release to live in London with his daughter Lucie, whom he had never met. The story is set against the conditions that led up to the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror.

First editions of 'A Tale of Two Cities' can be identified by the presence of the publisher's name, Chapman & Hall, on the title page. Additionally, the phrase 'All the Year Round' on the title page indicates that it might be a first edition as the book was serialized there alongside its initial publication in book form.